Weapons of Legacy
by Taggerung93
Summary: Fort Arnad is about how a young otter named Tagg and his friends chase a crew of corsairs from their home Fort Arnad to Redwall Abbey. The corsairs had stolen the Sapphire Sword, at the same time the axe of Dragun Steelsripe is stolen by other vermin.
1. A New Dawn

**Fort Arnad**

The air was cold and clear as dawn broke over Fort Arnad. The gentle waves of the Eastern Ocean lapped quietly on the shore as birds from the forest to the west began to sing. Sighing, Tagg Wavedeep closed his eyes as he felt the sun's first rays on his face. Sunflash was a muscular, young otter. Tagg had the most vibrant blue eyes. Tagg was an orphan; he was adopted by Captain Warnell Wavedeep when he first arrived at Arnad with his nearly dead mother seasons ago at the end of autumn. Opening his eyes Tagg looked out to the ocean, it was a beautiful blue and the sky above was tinged pink and purple. All was calm and peaceful until…_Bong! Bong! Bong!_

The bell ringer Rustle Redoak decided it was time to ring the bell to tell all the other otters and squirrels living in the fort that dawn had arrived. Tagg rested his arms on the bluish slate parapet and waited for someone to relieve him from sentry duty. His arms were sore from holding up his large wooden buckler and spear for three hours. He spun around quickly on the stone ramparts when someone tapped him on the shoulder. It was his sentry replacement Garron Longstone.

"Hey mate, I'm here to take your sentry duty," said Garron. "Go get some breakfast, there's blueberry pancakes and strawberry cordial!"

Tagg smiled and thanked Garron before he ran across the wall and down the stairs where he nearly crashed into Drill Sergeant Armanzi. Speedily dodging past him Tagg sped across the training fields and into the main building. He set his wooden shield and iron spear against the wall and turned left into the mess hall. He took his place at the end of serving line right after Jennil Pinebrush. Jennil was a beautiful squirrel with light brown fur and hazel eyes.

"Good mornin' Jen. How's it goin' on the west side?" asked Tagg.

"Not a sign of vermin for a few miles out. Did ya hear? The Dirnaith are taking new recruits! I really want to be chosen." replied Jennil.

"Wow, I hope I really want be recruited. Maybe we should compete in the Skills Exhibition? They might have recruiters there."

By this time the otter and squirrel had reached the food and the intoxicating smells of blueberry pancakes, lemon cranberry muffins and hot maple syrup reached their noses. Jennil and Tagg each took 2 blueberry pancakes and covered them with syrup. Jennil commented on how the food was cooked as she usually did. There was nothing the squirrel loved more than cooking, except possibly beating a vermin into the dust. At the end of the serving counter there were 3 large barrels and a kettle of water for tea. Tagg filled a beaker with strawberry cordial and Jennil took a teacup of cold mint cordial. Then taking their plates they went to a table where their friends Rustle Redoak, Sprig Streamspray and Jay Oceanwind.

"Hey Tagg, hey Jennil. They are posting the new recruits tomorrow at breakfast." said Jay, "I heard that the new recruits have Drill Sergeant Fleetpaw."

"That sucks. Tagg and I are going to compete in the Exhibition because there might be scouts there. I really want to be recruited although I wish we could get Drill Sergeant Rushflat." replied Jennil.

Sprig mumbled through a mouthful of muffin, "Aye, that'd be a blast. Well I think if it means a better chance at getting recruited then all of us will compete in the ex."

"I don't know if I want to be recruited." said Jay quietly.

"Why not?" asked Tagg and the squirrels. Almost all the adolescents of Fort Arnad wanted a place in the Dirnaith, Fort Arnad's grand army. All five of the companions were training to become a member. Oddly enough, Sprig didn't seem surprised, Tagg guessed it was because Jay had already told her. The two spent all their time together and recently they had been going off.

"Well, I was thinking that I might go into sailing instead." replied Jay meekly, "I just prefer the open sea to being in an army for the rest of my life."

His only reply came from Rustle who had been busy reading a book on bows, "You know you could join the ocean faction of the army. They spend most of their time sailing up and down the coast heading off raiders and corsairs. The group finished their breakfast as they talked more about the upcoming exhibition. When they had finished eating they put their dishes in the washing bucket and headed to their Historical War Strategies class. After classes they had lunch in the orchard. Usually after lunch they would have combat classes, but they had been cancelled because of the exhibition. So the friends went to sign up for the exhibition. Out of them all Tagg was the first to fight. He was fighting Jarred Janglefist in the 4th match. Jarred was a large brawny otter, he bullied all the weaker creatures in Fort Arnad. Tagg and his friends went to sit in the stands that had been put around the main combat ring. The first fight was between Rangle and Fred the two squirrel twins. They each chose their weapons, Rangle chose a mace and Fred took a long metal lance. Then they donned their armour and entered the ring. They gave a warriors salute to each other, they saluted the four judges, they saluted the watchers and finally they saluted each other again. The head judge called for the match to begin and the twins began circling each other. Fred struck first by stabbing out with his lance. Rangle sidestepped the thrust and countered by charging in and smashing downward with his mace. Fred dodged out of the way and swung his lance. The lance hit Rangle in the side and he went down hard. He then rolled to the side narrowly avoiding another hit from Fred. Rangle struggled to stand but was knocked down again by a sound thwack from Fred's lance. With a groan he called stop. The head judge called for the match to halt and declared Fred the winner. The five friends watched the following two battles in awe and fascination wondering if they would be able to win even their first fight. Then it was Tagg's turn, nervously he made his way to the armour tent. Once in the tent Lance Corporal Davin handed him a mail shirt and greaves. Tagg strapped on the greaves and pulled of his belt. Then putting the mail shirt over his red tunic he put his belt back on. Finally he donned a cloth cap and a mail coif. Taking a helmet he exited the tent passing Jarred on his way. Tagg looked over the weapons set out for the match. Turning to the squirrel that stood by the weapons he asked, "Do you have any great swords?"

"I don't have any here, but there is a few of them in the main armory. I didn't bring any out because I didn't think any of the competitors would have the strength or skill to wield one. But I'll go get one for you if you think you can handle it." replied the squirrel in a thick, deep voice. Then he ambled off in the direction of the armory.

Jarred had just exited the tent, he laughed, "I bet that old fogey wouldn't give you a weapon. That's a good thing you probably would have killed yourself with it." Then Jarred picked up a double-bladed battle axe and entered the ring. After a few minutes the squirrel came back and handed a heavy but balanced sword. He handed it to Tagg with a smile and a nod. Tagg took the sword and entered the fighting ring. He did his mandatory 3 salutes and then saluted Jarred again out of respect, Jarred saluted only 3 times. Jarred looked at Tagg and sneered as he readied his weapon. Tagg tried to ignore the sneer but he was fuming inside from what Jarred had said earlier and everything else about him. As he tried to calm himself Tagg prepared himself by standing in the Warrior Ready stance with his dominant right foot back and his sword held in the parry position for his dominant side. The hilt of the sword was at his waist and his right shoulder was rolled back slightly. The Warrior Ready stance could let him go into the offensive or defensive easily.

"Fighters at the ready!" yelled the referee Drill Seargent Rushflat and small wiry otter, "BEGIN!"

The two otters stood facing each other for a few seconds before Jarred came rushing forward and yelling, "Yarrrrrggghhhhhhhhhh!"

Jarred swung his axe down horizontally for Taggs' head, Tagg quickly ducked and rolled under Jarreds' legs. He then swung his sword at Jarreds' torso, Jarred parried with a clang and countered with a downward slash. The axe slammed into Taggs' shoulder and he fell to the ground. It looked like Tagg was injured to badly to continue but suddenly his eyes turned bloody red and he swung his sword with amazing force and speed hitting Jarreds' knees, and then he got up and slammed his blade down on his head. Now Jarred was on the ground but he rolled out of the way and charged Tagg swinging his axe back and forth before slamming into Tagg's side. This time Tagg countered by stabbing at Jarreds' chest with his sword, Jarred was hit and the referee called, "Halt! Three hits on Jarred, the winner is Tagg Wavedeep!"

The watchers cheered, they were all yelling and screaming because the bully had been defeated. Tagg smiled and staggered out of the ring as his eyes returned to their regular shining blue. Once outside of the ring he slowly made his way to a tent where two healers were tending to the competitors who were injured. Tagg entered the tent and sat down on a nearby oak chair. An old, silver-haired otter carrying a medicine satchel approached Tagg. She smiled at him and said, "Here let me bandage your wounds."

The others also won their fights. Rustle dodged all his opponents blows and let him tire before hitting him in the chest with three blunt arrows. Jay accidentally knocked out his opponent when he prepared to swing his axe. Jennil won through pure skill with her saber and Sprig just took her opponents hits before hitting them hard with her warhammer. For her build Sprig was amazingly strong. The rest of the afternoon past as the young creatures participated in the Exhibition, the first round of the competition was over just a few minutes before the bells resounded telling all the creatures of Arnad that it was time for the inhabitants to dine. The five companions headed into the main building. They sat down at their usual round, wooden table. Tagg smiled and asked what everyone would like to drink; he went to the far corner and took 5 iron flagons. He filled three with strawberry cordial, one with cold mint and comfrey tea and the last with dandelion fizz. When he came back to the table with the beverages he discovered that Rustle and Jay had already went to get the food.

"So what vittles have the cooks grilled up today?" he said as he sat down beside Sprig. "I'm starvin'! The fights really tired me out!"

"And you think we're still full of energy? Try having to wield one of your scimitars with your rudder! I'm in need of a great big bowl of steaming hotroot soup!"

"Don't worry mate, there'll be plenty of soup for all!" said Jay joyously. He was carrying a tray with three large bowls of what otters called shrimp and hotroot soup. It was made with shrimp, bulrushes and other water vegetation; when the shrimp were nearly cooked some spicy hotroot pepper was put in. The quantity was up to the chef but otters loved it nice and spicy.

"Nothing 'otter for an otter!" Tagg, Sprig and Jay chorused.

* * *

That same night Redwall was holding Abbot Reiron's Jubilee Feast. Creatures from all across Mossflower came to Redwall that night, the feast was held in the abbey orchard. Wooden tables were set in a circle midst the blooming trees. The Redwallers were all bustling about, servers were bringing food from the kitchen, drinks were being brought of from the cellars, and more tables were being set up. Redwall's gates were open and many woodland creatures were joining the festivities. Dali, Redwall's badger mother was taking the abbey babes to the pond to wash up. The babes, called Dibbuns, didn't want to go wash up and they kept on running away over the lawn. It didn't take long for them to be scooped up by one beast or another and brought back to the pond. Dali, who was on her knees by the pond scrubbing Dibbuns couldn't get up fast enough to catch them. One particularly chaotic squirrel dressed in a clean blue tunic ran off for the 6th or 7th time, he nearly made it out the abbey gate, but was caught at the last minute by a brawny otter. The heavily muscled otter was wearing a plain green tunic with a beautifully woven belt over it. Tied to the belt was a sling and a pouch full of pebbles, and he was carrying a double pointed javelin across his back. The otter grabbed the Dibbun and threw him up in the air. The Dibbun was caught easily by another strong otter, this one was younger and female, the otter carried him over to Dali. "Hi Dali, it looks like little Rumree trying to go vermin hunting in the wood again."

"That sounds about right, Azura. This little scamp has been trying to get outside all day. I think he wanted to find your father. Would you help me with the rest of these Dibbuns?" the huge badger replied as she grabbed yet another runaway Dibbun.

"Rumree was trying to find Skipper? Why would he do that?" Azura was now down on her knees beside Dali, she grabbed a sponge and some soap and started scrubbing Dibbuns.

"Little Rumree fancies himself a sailor. And who's a better sailor then Skip? But even though Rumree the river squirrel wants your dad to build him a miniature boat he still refuses to get a bath. Well looks like everyone is cleaned up, lets take them over to the table."

The strong badger stood up with a groan, the Dibbuns all grouped around her some of them clung onto her green linen dress. Azura stood behind the group making sure none of the rascals ran off. In that formation they slowly made their way to the circle of tables. Dali and Azura sat all the Dibbuns around two large wooden tables, with them sat babes from the families that came from Mossflower Woods. Dali led Azura to seat with a few other beasts her age, then Dali went to the head table and took her place in the huge wooden chair that had been brought out from Great Hall. Beside her was a smaller but still beautifully carved Abbot's chair. Abbot Reiron, dressed in a clean brown habit with a woven white girdle tied around his waist approached. He took his place at the head of the table, he took a small bell that was placed on the table in front of his chair. When the abbot rang the bell it made a clear ring_. Ding a ling_.

"Redwallers, woodlanders please take a seat at a table. The food will be brought out soon-" began the Abbot before he was interrupted by Redwall's resident hair Jasper Swiftpaw.

"Mmmmm, bring out the jolly tucker ol' chap. Finish the speech and bring out the grub! Wot, wot!"

Reiran continued before he could be interrupted again, "As I was saying, The food will be brought out soon. But first will young Jovan bless us by saying grace."

"Of course I will Father Abbot," said a smiling young squirrel

_Mice, otters, squirrels, moles,  
__Hedgehogs, hares, badgers, voles,  
__You come here to fill your plates,  
__Through forests and our Abbey gates,  
__Join us now, to share some food,  
__Stories, plays and drinks we brewed._

Everyone applauded the young squirrel's inventive grace. Blushing Jovan straightened his girdle and sat down beside Azura who complimented him, the compliment made Jovan blush even more. After the creatures stopped clapping they began filling plates, bowls, beakers, mugs, tankards and flagons. There was no particular order to eating Redwall fare, some Dibbuns started with large bowls of trifle with lots of meadow cream and berries while Skipper's otter crew filled large wooden bowls with shrimp and hotroot soup. Everyone shared the delicious fare making sure the woodlanders tried every type of food. The tables were creaking under the weight of the delicious spread; there was many types of bread and farls. There were 10 different cheeses ranging from small yellow cheese to big white ones with spices and nuts inside. There was salads, soups, turnovers, pasties, flans, trifles, cakes, pies, tarts and more. To one side of tables a group of trestles were set up and on them were barrels of ale, cordial, fizz and wine. There was lots of entertainment, there was plenty of music and many stories were told, Skipper and his otter crew preformed an acrobatic act with the squirrels, the family of hedgehogs called the Rundyspikes had a spike tussling tournament with all the other hedgehogs. Spike tussling is when to hedgehogs lock head spikes and try to throw the other off the ground. The tournament was very funny as some hedgehogs Dibbuns decided they could take on the champion Stumphead Rundyspike themselves. The Dibbuns attached their small head spikes to his head and tried to flip him. Their efforts only caused Stumphead to swing his head a bit, but when his head moved Stump's main head spike knocked into a nearby barrel of Strawberry Fizz causing its contents to spill out over the Dibbuns sitting under it.


	2. Twilight Raids

**Chapter Two: Twilight Raids**

Later that same night, a large corsair ship dropped anchor in the water by Fort Arnad. The ship was made of sturdy wood with canvas sails it was watertight and painted on the side of it was the name _Mouseblood_. The ship was filled with the corsairs, searats and freebooters at the time most of the crew was in their cabins snoring like hogs. But an elite force was up and about under the instruction of the ships' captain Gortek Tranud. Tranud was a fox, the slyest, strongest and meanest fox in the Eastern Ocean, he was also the richest. But this night Tranud was out to steal one of the three greatest treasures in all the land. "Rudug! Get the crew to furl the sails and tell the land squad to get in the dinghy and get some people to lower it once I'm in! You're in charge while I'm gone." shouted Tranud from his position on the poop deck of the ship.

Straightening his sea blue tunic and tightening his eel skin belt Tranud descended the stairs from the poop deck to the main deck. When he reached the dinghy which was amidships on the starboard side he easily jumped over the side of the dinghy landing right in the middle of the ship. Tranud had just sat when a score of corsairs reached the small boat. They all climbed in as Tranud called for the dinghy to be lowered.

"Wait! Wait Cap'n you forgot yo' sword!" wailed a small rat who was running to the lowering dinghy with a falchion much too big for him. The vermin lowering the boat stopped and held the ropes as the runty rat gave Tranud his shining steel weapon. Tranud snatched the falchion by the hilt so quickly the honed blade left a cut in the dirty, brown rats' paw.

"If'n you call ma' blade a sword one more time I'll cut yo' head off rat!" ranted the corsair captain as he whacked the flat of his bade against the rats' back, turning to the other vermin in the boat he spoke in a lower tone, "Once we get on the beach there is to be no talking. If someone utters a single sound I will weigh them down with rocks and toss the in the sea." Then he stuffed the blade in his belt and once again called for the dinghy to be lowered. Once the keel of the small craft touched the water the two corsairs- a weasel and a stoat -at the fore and aft of the craft unhooked it from the larger barque. Then the two ferrets that sat either side of Gortek began to row the dinghy towards the shore. The oars made a swishing sound as the two ferrets paddled the boat over the water.

Although it was only twilight the light of the moon was already strong, and the small rowboat sailed right through a moonlit patch of water to be seen by a young otter on nighttime guard duty. Unfortunately the beast was half asleep and his brain didn't register the craft until it pulled onto the rocky beach with crunch.

As soon as the dinghy landed on the beach Tranud jumped out easily, motioning for the two rowing ferrets to stay with the boat he set off for Fort Arnad with the rest of his force in tow. With their paws treading as softly as possible on the rocky beach the corsairs quickly covered the wide beach and reached the heavy wooden eastern gate of the oceanside fort. Tranud didn't even bother to try and open the door that was kept closed by a heavy wooden bar instead he walked to the northern side where there was just a small wooden door. A sturdy weasel by the name of Slick approached the wall, he looked up and down the bluish slate walls and set his claws in cracks where the mortar had been worn away. Then the thin but well muscled weasel climbed the rough stone wall with the ease of one who has done something many times.

The young otter that happened to spot the approaching vermin ran across the wall as soon as he thought to sound the alarm. He ran down the stairs two at a time and his paws sent dirt and grass flying as he crossed the grounds with uncanny speed. Once he was in the main building he gave a loud shout, "Vermin approaching! Corsairs from east! Jollyboat with a score of vermin has landed!"

His shout caused the whole building to become a hive of activity, otters assembled on the eastern wall ready to launch a heavy river stone from their slings at a moments notice. Squirrels stood on the battlements of the other walls to make sure none of the vermin headed to some other peaceful haven. Tagg and stood on the eastern wall with the other otters, he scanned the sea for a sight of any other vermin. He happened to spot a searat who had fallen behind the rest of the land party. With a cry he twirled his sling and let loose a heavy stone, the projectile hit the searat on the top of the head. He dropped senseless as soon as the rock made contact. Other recruits launched their stones at the two ferrets sitting beside the dinghy while yet more otters launched flaming arrows at the wooden boat. Most of the arrows landed inside the boat and some of the materials in it quickly caught fire. In instants the entire craft was consumed in flame.

The weasel, Slick climbed the wall in a matter of minutes, stabbing the footpaw of an unsuspecting squirrel with his poison coated steel dagger he made it onto the ramparts without incident. The squirrel just fell over the wall to be caught by the vermin below. Then he weaved around the other inhabitants and made it to the fort grounds, where he picked the heavy padlock on the wicker gate allowing the other corsairs into Fort Arnad. Moving silently the vermin made their past the barracks and schoolhouse and across the ground to the main building. They made great speed as most of the soldiers were either on the walls and the others were sleeping in the dormitories. They entered the main building through a door that was left open in the rush to the walls.

"Oi! You stay here and make sure no one follows us, Raggab, Drase follow me!" said Tranud as he ascended the stairs on the right of the door. The rat Raggab and the fox Drase followed trying to keep up with their captains pace. They climbed the spiral stairs all the way to the top of the building. At the top was a solid oak door which was guarded by an otter and a squirrel who each carried a steel tipped spear and held a round steel buckler in their other hand, strapped to their hip was a plain steel longsword in a black leather scabbard. On seeing the fox both guards stabbed forward with their spears but by that time the sly fox had already stabbed them both with in the chest with his jeweled falchion. The corsair captain stood aside as the fox Drase greased the bolts of the door, then taking a rag Drase pulled out the bolts and swung the door open.

Tranud walked into the circular room and made his way to the glass case in the middle of the room. Inside the case was a beautiful greatsword made of star metal. It had a decorative cross guard and a black leather bound hilt, set in the pommel was a dark blue sapphire. The sword rested on blue velvet beside a brown leather scabbard that looked as if it were made for the sword. Tranud smashed the glass case with the hilt of his falchion, and picked up the beautiful sword. He inspected it closely to make sure that the glass had not damaged it, fortunately there was not a scratch on it. The fox grabbed the hilt and sheathed the blade in its' scabbard. Then he clipped the scabbard onto his eel skin. Then picking up his falchion he made his way out of the chamber and moved quickly down the stairs.

Meanwhile out on the walls the soldiers of Fort Arnad continued to watch for vermin. Tranud and his party were exiting through the north wicker gate when they were spotted by Rustle who yelled, "Vermin! They were in the fort! Coming out the north gate!"

Upon hearing the warning the corsairs ran towards where they thought their dinghy to be. But when they rounded the corner of Fort Arnad they saw the water craft had been burned to ashes. "Who burnt down the jollyboat?" cried the small party of vermin in unison, with the sight of their escape burnt down the vermin began to panic, they were scrambling around on the beach when Gortek yelled, "Stop moving you idiots! You're showing yourself as targets!"

Just as Gortek finished his sentence a volley of arrows hit the sand just short of the corsairs. A few arrows wounded some of the creatures. Then Gortek spoke again telling the motley array of vermin to make their way east into the forest where they could take cover. Hearing the command the seabeasts set off for the woods nearby with arrows chasing them all the way. They made it into the woods where they scouted out a small clearing. Tranud ordered the corsairs to forage for food as he had some foxes put up a tent for him to sleep in during the night. The foxes quickly threw a large peic of canvas over a branch and pinned down the ends with wooden pegs. The others came back with a few pawfuls of roots and berries but nothing more.

When the fox saw the meager supplies the crew had scavenged he snorted and said, "I'm retiring to my tent. By the time I get out I will be expecting either cooked fish or fowl." With that he went into his tent where he lay down on a piece of canvas that was laid out inside. He came out a while later because he smelt the scent of roasted wood pigeon.

"You found something decent for me. Good now douse this fire before the otters and squirrels spot it!" he snarled as he snatched the roasted bird from the fire. "Varuse come attend to me in my tent!"

As Gortek settled himself as comfortably as possible on the hard ground a elderly vixen entered the tent. She was wearing a tattered purple shawl with glass beads and shells attached to it. Under the shawl she wore a ripped green dress with a woven cloth belt. Attached to the belt was a bunch of pouches filled with herbs, shells and pebbles. "What do you want of me?" she asked as she entered the tent and squatted in front of the corsair fox.

Tranud closed his eyes and spoke in a voice no louder than a whisper, "My leg. The pains have come back, this time they are stronger than ever. Give me something to lessen the pain."

"Of course." Varuse took out a small pestle and bowl and began to crush some herbs in it. Sticking her head outside the tent she said, "Someone get me some salt water and greensap milk."

Awhile later two canteens were brought to the tent, the healing seer instructed the rat who brought it to her, "Boil the seawater till it is nice and hot, and then soak some rags in it." Then she took the canteen of milk and poured a bit of it onto Tranud's leg. "This'll help to relax your muscles, sire." explained Varuse. Then the elderly wold mixed a bit more of the milk with the herbs she had crushed. She set the bowl aside for a while as she inspected Tranuds' leg. A few minutes later the herbs and milk had hardened a bit making a greenish paste. Varuse spread the paste over both of the corsair captain's leg, when the rags soaked in boiled salt water arrived she took them and wrapped Tranuds' sore leg in them. Then digging through her herb satchel she produced a small bottle of an sickly purplish liquid which she gave to Tranud.

"Leave that for the rest of the night it should help the pain subside. If not, drink some of this. But not too much or it could severely damage your mind." She instructed as she exited the tent.

* * *

Colonel Swiftpaw took the rolled up piece of willow bark parchment from the rough wooden desk of the Badger Lord of Salamandastron. Written on that piece of parchment was a list of new Long Patrol recruits. The Long Patrol was an elite regiment of hares that lived in the mountain Salamandastron, they are commanded by the resident Badger Lord. At this time the Badger Lord was Dragun Steelstripe, a huge male badger that wielded a doubled bladed battleaxe. On this particular night it happened to be the day that Steelstripe picked out some new recruits from the young hares living in the mountain. His second in command Colonel Swiftpaw, had just arrived in his chamber when he finished the list. Dragun smiled and said, "Yet another group of hares to join the Long Patrol. I remember when you were recruited when you found out you tried to run into the mess hall and tell your friends so quickly you tripped over your own paws."

The colonel smoothed out a wrinkle in his bright red dress tunic as he blushed with embarrassment, "I was young and excited m'lud. To be in the Long Patrol especially under one as experienced as you was a great honor!" he tried to explain amidst the badgers' roaring laughter.

Dragun took a deep breath and sighed, "I'm sorry I laughed at you Swift. But you must admit it was quite funny. Anyways why don't you go read that out in the mess hall, I'll be down in a few minutes."

"Alright I'll save you some grub, make sure the recruits don't scoff it all, wot!" Swiftpaw saluted and turned on his heel, marching smartly out of the chamber. Steelstripe sighed and stood up, and walked over to where his great battleaxe hung on two wooden pegs embedded in the stone. Lifting it with one huge paw he exited the chamber and went to his training room. The room was filled with thick wooden poles, most of them had large chunks tooken out of their sides. Raising his axe with both paws the Steelstripe gave a roar and swung his axe in a wide arc, the battle axe gouged into a nearby pole with a dull thud. Heaving on the handle the badger dislodged the axe and swing again, this time with an overhead chop. The axe sheared off a heavy piece of wood sticking out of the side of another pole. A few small splinters came loose and poked at the badgers' skin through his dark green tunic.

He continued to swing his axe at the many poles until a young hare came and stood at attention before him. Stopping his axe in mid swing the badger looked at the hare and said gruffly, "What do you want?"

The hare saluted and barked out, "The Colonel sent me, sah! Said you had to jolly well come down or we young 'uns would eat all the vittles, sah!"

Dragun smiled and chuckled, "Just like Swiftpaw to warn me that the food was eaten by young hares when it was really him. Thank you, dismissed."

The hare turned and ran off back to the mess hall, probably got hungry from standing here thought Dragun as he returned his axe to its' resting place and made his way downstairs. Then he made his way down the mountain stronghold to the mess hall where leverets and new recruits were busy eating and throwing food. Seeing the mess Steelstripe boomed out in his low, loud voice, "Stop throwing food! Next person that lets fly a piece of grub is sentenced to no more dinner!"

At the mention of not being able to eat all the hares dropped the food that they were about to toss and sat down at a table and began to eat in silence. The Badgerlord standing at the entrance to the mess hall just laughed and picked up a pawful of oatmeal. With all his strength he threw it at Colonel Swiftpaw who was standing at the other end of the mess. The oatmeal struck the colonel on his head and slid down onto his dress tunic. Frowning indignantly the hare said, "You sah, just ruined my best dress tunic! Then taking a small loaf of bread from a plate nearby he launched it back at the badger, after that the mess erupted in chaos with hares throwing food everywhere, but mostly at Steelstripe or another senior officer.

Outside the mountain a 3 score rats were trekking south down the beach towards the stronghold. At their head was a large rat with completely black fur, you could barely see him in the half light of the rising moon. The rat went by the name Roan the Ironhammer, he earned the nickname Ironhammer from the giant iron war hammer he wielded. Right now it was strapped to his back as he led his small army of Sand Rats to Salamandastron. The Sand Rats were the size of a regular rat but their fur wasn't the usually brown or grey, instead it was the same colour as the sand. In daylight they could barely be seen on the beach or in the dunes.

"Hurry up you dipheads! We don't have long to get in there and get out." yelled Roan at his small horde. At his command the rats immediately began to quicken their pace, staring up at the mountain in front of them. Once they reached it Roan turned to another rat, one who wasn't the same yellowy colour as the others. He was more a mottled grey-green colour, the rat was nearly invisible. With a nod the rat, named Stone started off to the mountain ahead of the others. He reached the mountain and slid behind the two hares guarding the entrance and into Salamandastron. From there he walked up to Draguns' chamber. Most of the hares were in the mess hall having a food fight and Stone slipped past the hares on guard duty easily. When he reached the Badgerlords' chamber the passage was deserted. Stone pushed open the wooden door and lifted the massive battleaxe from its' pegs. Heaving the heavy weapon over his shoulder Stone made his way to the window where he jumped out to land on the sandy beach.

"Did you get it?" asked Roan impatiently.

"Yessir, I took it from his chamber. The badger and most of the hares were in the mess hall. No one saw me."

"Good, the rest of you follow me! We have the axe, now we need the sword of Redwall!" yelled Ironhammer as he snatched the battleaxe from Stone and set off north up the beach in the direction of the River Moss.


	3. Dreams and Journeys

**Chapter Three: Dreams and Journeys**

A full moon was hanging over Fort Arnad, Tagg was asleep in his bed having just finished sentry duty. Tagg slept in the dormitory with the other male otters in the same training year as himself. He had been dreaming of being a captain in the Dirnaith, the army of Fort Arnad up until now. Tagg dreamt he was standing at the edge of a forest looking up to a red sandstone building. There was a thick gray fog over everything but he could make out a mouse dressed in full armor approaching him from the building. The mouse was carrying a magnificent sword with a ruby set in its hilt.

"I am Martin the Warrior of Redwall Abbey. Tagg, come help me! My sword is going to be stolen! Defend my Abbey against the forces of evil!" said the mouse.In his dream, Tagg tried to say that he wasn't the right person to ask but nothing came from his mouth.

"You are the one! Only you can save my sword and retrieve your own! Just listen and follow." replied Martin. Then he faded into the background and a beautiful female otter emerged. The otter was clad in a light blue dress that matched her eyes. The otter began to sing,

_On this journey 5 must come,  
__The sailor with eyes of a hawk,  
__The strong of heart as sturdy as a rock,  
__The forest beauty who loves to cook,  
__The one who will always have a book,  
__These four and then the one who was orphaned in late autumn._

_To find the Abbey you must travel,  
On your own path, do not stray to the gravel.  
Through the crowd of changing colors,  
Stay together and do not forsake the others.  
Forge a new path through to the sun  
Where it lands is the direction you shall run.  
Only travel through strips of gold  
Any others hold dangers untold.  
Where once a satin blue ribbon sat  
Now resides one who cannot be bested in combat.  
At the end of falling gold and red  
You shall find where a snake once shed.  
From there turn away from the scrambled thorn  
Go straight to find where my sword is worn.  
Remember my instructions and you shall find  
That your adventure is only a challenge of mind._

Then the otter, Martin and the Abbey all faded out of sight. Tagg woke a few minutes later soaked with sweat, _That dream must have excited me_, he thought to himself. Then suddenly he remembered the dream, Tagg rolled off of his bed and landed on the floor with a thump. He almost woke the other otters in the dorm. Quietly cursing Tagg stood up and pulled on a light blue tunic and his plain brown belt, he was going to Redwall Abbey and no one would stop him. He left the dorm and silently made his way to the armory. He was about to open the heavy oak door when he heard a small cough to his left. Tagg turned to see an old squirrel, his fur silver with age. "Before you leave, consider your actions." said the squirrel quietly.

Tagg paused at the door and wondered how the squirrel had known he was sneaking out. The old squirrel continued once he had made sure Tagg wouldn't leave. "Tonight, I had a dream. In it Martin the Warrior, the First Champion of Redwall Abbey came to me. He brought me to this spot and so I knew that someone else would come here." said the old squirrel. Then he stepped forward and removed a small necklace from his neck. It was a stone cut into the shape of an elm leaf. He gave it to Tagg who instantly knew that this was a trustworthy squirrel. So he sat down on the stone floor and waited for the squirrel to continue.

"My name is Elmjak. I know that Martin also came to you, or you would not be leaving. I will not stop you, but before you go make sure you have everything that you need."

"I'm getting weapons and armor right now and I can get some food from the kitchens. That's really all I need."

"Are you sure? Equipment can be useful but there is always something else."

Tagg sat for a minute and went over the poem in his head. The second half was directions, but the first. Then it hit him, "Friends! People to travel with me. That's what I need. _On this journey 5 must come, the sailor with eyes of a hawk, the strong of heart as sturdy as a rock, the forest beauty who loves to cook, the one who will always have a book, these four and then the one who was orphaned in late autumn._" The squirrel smiled and nodded.

"I can't think of who the first four are, but I am obviously the orphan. But who are the others?" said Tagg.

The squirrel replied, "Perhaps if you wait they will show up."

So the two sat by the door of the armory and waited. A few minutes later Jennil came skipping down the hall. "What are you two doing here? Only the apprentice cooks come out this late at night." Tagg explained his dream to her, as soon as he had finished she said, "I'm the forest beauty who loves to cook! Can't you see? Squirrels are forest creatures and I am one of the youngest cooks in the Fort!" So the Jennil sat down and they all waited for the next person to show up. Not soon after Jay walked down the corridor with his eyes closed and a bit of drool escaping his lips. Jay was sleep walking through the halls of Fort Arnad although he was given an abrupt awakening when he tripped over a step in the hall.

"Zzzzz- Whoa! What am I doing here? I should be asleep in the dorms." mumbled Jay through still sleepy lips. Then after he rubbed his eyes and adjusted to the flickering light of the hall he continued, his speech now much clearer. "What am I doing here? And what are you three doing here? We should all be asleep in our beds." Then when he noticed that the one squirrel was an elder he saluted and apologized for being out.

Tagg explained the situation to Jay who took a while to convince. After ten minutes Jay believed Tagg's dream and he also believed that he was the hawk-eyed sailor. Jay had barely sat down when Sprig came whistling and skipping down the hall. "Hey everybody!" she said cheerfully not in the least surprised to see three of her friends sitting on the ground with an elder squirrel in the middle of the night.

"Er... Sprig. Why are you up this early?" asked Jennil.

"I always get up early. Got to work on my stamina and fitness every day so I'm as sharp as one of arrows" replied Sprig as she bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. "But I don't usually see this many people during my early morning workouts. Why are all you guys out here?"

Once again Tagg explained his dream and that the four people who showed up would be his companions. After thinking about it for a minute Sprig said, "Well, duh. Of course I'm gonna come with you, whether I was mentioned in your dream or not. But I'm pretty sure I was the forest beauty who loves to cook." Sprig fluttered her eyelashes and assumed what she must have thought a dainty pose. Of course this only caused the others including Elmjak to burst out laughing. Although Sprig was pretty in her own way it was out of the question to consider her a forest beauty. Sprig just sighed and said, "Laugh if you must. But I can make blackened scones AND dishwater now, thank you very much."

The almost complete traveling group sat and waited. It was almost 30 minutes before their next and final companion arrived. Rustle, his nose once again buried in a thick tome was walking down the hall bumping into walls, statues and tables. Though Fort Arnad was a military base tapestries, paintings and other works of art adorned the halls. Rich, beautifully patterned carpets covered the stone floors and tables and statues were set in alcoves along the halls. Rustle avoided most of the obstacles and the few he did bump into just made him turn to a different direction, that was until he reached his friends and soon to be travel mates. He tripped over Jay's outstretched feet and landed unceremoniously on Jennil's lap.

"Ooh look what I found! A handsome red squirrel who can't look up long enough to avoid landing on his friends!" teased Jennil.

Standing up and brushing himself off Rustle replied sheepishly, "Sorry 'bout that. You see this book is just so interesting and it is very tedious to have to look up all the time." Rustle picked up the old heavy book from the floor, checking it's pages for rips and tears. "If you don't mind me asking though, why are you all out and about at such an early hour?" inquired Rustle as he fixed the spectacles perched on his nose.

Tagg for the fifth and final time explained his dream and why they were all sitting in the middle of the hall. "You must be the one who will always have a book." said Tagg as he stood and stretched his legs. Then he turned to the Elmjak and gave a deep bow, "Thank you Elder Elmjak. Without your words of wisdom I would have been gone now, with no friends at my back to support me in my quest."

Elmjak bowed to Tagg and said, "Any who would undertake such a challenging task must have great courage. And it will be challenging, I can promise you that. So I offer you my respect and I wish you luck on this venture and any others. But now, my part is over and I must return to my chambers for a much needed rest." With that last word the old squirrel shuffled off down the hall. Tagg nodded before getting down to business and having everyone do what they were best suited for.

"Alright. We'll need food for the trip. Jennil fill packs with food, but make sure it is suitable for travel. Sprig we'll need weapons, you know everyone's preference so get to it! And Jay we might need some other traveling equipment so go get anything you think we might need. After you're done meet back here." barked Tagg. The others instantly heeded his commands and headed off to do their jobs.

"What am I supposed to do Tagg?" asked Rustle meekly.

"You have the most important job, Rustle. I need to copy down the song before I forget it and then make sense of it so we know which way to go." Tagg's voice and demeanor instantly made Rustle feel important and filled him with self confidence.

"I'll get to it right away, sir!" said Rustle enthusiastically . He saluted Tagg before scampering off on all fours to get some ink and parchment. A few minutes later Rustle came running back. When he reached Tagg he spread out a large scroll and popped the cork of a small vial of ink. Dipping his black quill into the ink he began writing down what Tagg recited. After five long minutes and some hard contemplation they had the song down fully and with no mistakes. Rustle blew on the ink to help it dry faster as he read the second half over and over.

About half an hour later the others came back laden with items. Jennil handed each of the companions a haversack full of food, "There is plenty of food that won't go bad over time or in the sun. Everyone has a full water skin and a jar of sweetening powder too." Sprig tossed a bundle of weapons to the others and handed them all a chain shirt all five of them strapped on their weapons. Tagg put a dagger on the back of his belt and a dirk on his left hip. Each blade had a brown leather sheath and a crosspiece. The hilts were bound with soft supple brown leather. Tagg tied his pouch of stones and his sling onto the right side of his belt then buckled on his other belt. This belt was also brown leather and it ran across Tagg's chest from his right shoulder to his left hip. Attached to it was his quiver of arrows and his bow. Sticking out past his left shoulder was the hilt of a large steel great sword. Rustle had an oddly curved bow and a quiver on his back as well as two daggers tucked into his cloth waist belt. Jay had a large double bladed battle axe strapped to his broad back and a sling wrapped around his waist like a belt. In his paws he gripped a wooden javelin. Jennil had a sling attached to her belt and a large bag of pebbles tied on her belt beside it. Oh her right hip a steel saber was sheathed. Sprig had a large war hammer inscribed with ruins on her back. It's handle crossed with her bow and quiver that were also strapped onto her back. Jay gave everyone a backpack and a dark green cloak. Each of them donned the cloak and put their armor into the backpacks along with the haversacks of food. After everyone was ready to go Tagg motioned for them to wait and ran off in the direction of the tower. He came back with a large bundle that clinked as he walked. He put the bundle into his backpack, it was a tight fit but he finally got it in.

"Alright, we're ready to go as soon as Rustle solves the puzzle." said Tagg.

Rustle stood up and wrapped the scroll and put it into his backpack. "I've got the first few lines, it says to travel through the forest and to the east. It also gives a few warnings, to stay together and to not travel on already made paths."

"Alright," said Tagg, "Let's get going. We'll go through the small wicker gate in the corner of the east wall." The five travelers clad in the blue tunis of Fort Arnad and covered in forest green cloaks slipped silently through the halls and across the grounds. They made it to the wicker gate in the southern corner of the eastern wall unseen. Tagg pushed on the gate but it wouldn't budge. All the otters silently cursed but Jennil and Rustle just smiled. Rustle pushed his way to the front of the group and jimmied the lock open. As they left the military garrison all the others commented on Rustle's skills.

* * *

Lord Steelstripe returned to his chambers after having a hearty meal with the rowdy young hares and the stern seasoned war veterans of Salamandastron. To the mighty badger's horror his legendary battle axe -which had been in the possession of the Badger Lords for years- was gone! He had hung it on the two hooks in his main chamber before he had went down for supper. Immediately Dragun began searching for an intruder, over turning heavy furniture with ease. He ripped his drapes from the walls and tossed furniture everywhere. He went through every room in his suite and found nothing. It wasn't until he pulled back the curtains of the window in his main room that he found what he was looking for. A swarm of sand colored figures moving steadily north up the beach could be seen in the dim light of night. The badger's sharp eyesight could just make out the horde of rats. Automatically, Steelstripe knew who it was that had stolen his axe.

"IRONNNHAMMMMERRRRR!!" bellowed Dragun out the window. The filthy corsair rat had been after the famous axe for years and it caused him to stay and raid on the land and lose much of his crew. His corsair crew was unsuited to the land and they were either killed or they deserted Roan. Roan had found a group of Sand Rats fighting each other for scraps. Now he was an almost unstoppable force, the only thing that stopped them for conquering everything was Salamandastron.

The Badger Lord stomped out of his room and slammed the heavy stone door against the wall and cracking it in the process. He ran full speed down the many halls and corridors of the mountain stronghold and made it into the mess hall in a matter of seconds. The hares had still been eating and tossing food around but this all came to an abrupt end when Dragun burst in.

"Colonel Swiftpaw!" boomed the enraged badger.

The colonel did credit to his name as he crossed the hall, dodging any hares in his way and still making it to Steelstripe without being hit by any of the food being launched across the hall. "Yes, sir!" barked Swiftpaw once he had reached Steelstripe's side. Normally he wouldn't address him in such a formal manner but it was clear to all that this was important.

"Colonel, gather half the troops. Around 30 veterans, with at least 3 battles under their belts. Equip everyone with weapons, armor and food. Assemble them on the northern parade ground, we march in one hour." commanded Steelstripe, "General Rassenburg, report to me!"

As Swiftpaw sounded the call to arms and selected his troops General Rassenburg came swiftly but elegantly to his Lord's side. Rassenburg was an old war veteran who was as capable as Steelstripe himself when it came to tactics and a master at wielding his signature saber. "Yes, m'lud." said the general in his raspy voice.

"General, I am leaving with half the force. Mostly new recruits, but the veterans are seasoned warriors with plenty of experience. Do you still have enough to defend the mountain if need be?" said Steelstripe his original fury melting away.

The general twisted his thick gray mustache and tapped the ground with his footpaw as he thought, "Yes m'lud. That should be enough to fend off any corsairs. May I request an explanation for your departure?"

The badger nodded and said, "Yes. I'll explain on the way, follow me." Then Dragun set off back up the stairs to his private chambers. As he walked he explained about his stolen axe and how Ironhammer had taken it. When they got up Steelstripe said, "Now, I must speak to my ancestors about my failure to protect the legendary Axe of Salamandatron. Can you pack my armor and find a battle axe suitable for my use." Then he continued further up the mountain till he came to what seemed like a dead end. The burly badger fit his claws into a small groove and pulled with all his strength. The veins on his neck bulged as the rock slab moved to create a gap big enough for Steelstripe to slide through. The slab moved back into place once the badger got into the chamber.

Inside the chamber were the bodies of his ancestors sitting on carved stone chairs. They stretched across the hall and at the end there were empty chairs for Steelstripe and his successors when they passed on. Steelstripe through some herbs into a lantern and lit it. The fumes filled the chamber as Steelstripe knelt in front of the previous Lords.

"I have failed, oh great ones. I have lost the Axe of Salamandatstron, the one that was forged by Boar the Fighter from star metal, along with two other swords. The ruby long sword was given to Martin the Warrior and Redwall Abbey, the sapphire great sword to Fort Arnad on the eastern coast and the axe was lost. When my father recovered that legendary axe, the inhabitants of Salamandastron were overjoyed myself included. When my father died I took great pride in wielding the axe and I took a vow to never let another take it from me. I have failed and lost the axe. I know I must go to retrieve it and so I ask for your guidance on my quest."

Then Steelstripe stood and turned to the bare wall of the chamber. On it pictures and runes from badger script were carved deeply into the walls. No one knew who had originally written it all but it provided Badger Lord's with some knowledge of the future or what was happening in another place. The Badger Script was an old language only known to the badgers of Salamandastron and a few learned others. The Badger ran his hand over the carvings till he felt that he was in the right place. At the start of the line was Salamandastron, a rat and an axe. Then he saw a group of rats heading towards a river and at the end of the river was Redwall Abbey. From this Dragun knew that the Sandrats had headed north to the River Moss, which they were going to follow east till they reach the place where the river was forded by the path. On that path was Redwall Abbey, Roan Ironhammer's final destination. Steelstripe was about to leave when he noticed some carvings his paw had covered. There was a ship, also heading for Redwall and beside it was a sword with a sapphire in its' hilt. Chasing after the ship was a group of five, three otters and two squirrels all of them looked trained in the art of battle. One in particular stood out, a male otter with a blue eye burning with the spirit of a warrior. But the other eye, was red and bloodshot that emanated rage and fury all concentrated into amazing battle prowess. Steelstripe knew that look well, that was the look of the Bloodwrath.

After staring at the warrior otter for a long time Steelstripe doused the lamp and left the stone chamber. The general was waiting with a large haversack and a heavy steel axe. Standing beside him was Colonel Swiftpaw.

"This is the best I could find, m'lud. Steel blade and handle, but it's a bit heavy." rasped Rassenburg.

"Thank you for your help friend, I hope no harm comes to my mountain while I am away." said Steelstripe softly, if he spoke any louder he might make his two friends permanently deaf.

"None at all if I have a say in it, sah! I wish ye luck on yon trip, m'lud. Now if'n ye don't mind I have business to attend to." said the veteran general. Then he saluted with both his ear and his paw before heading off down the corridors.

"The troops are ready and waiting, sir!" barked Swiftpaw, forgetting that his voice would be magnified.

Steelstripe covered his ears at the loud noise and whispered, "Not so loud up here, Colonel. Anyway, follow me. We leave at once." Then the humongous badger shouldered the bag of armor and grabbed the large steel axe before leaving the small passageway. The hare and badger made their way through the maze of corridors in Salamandastron to the bottom level. They went out the main northern exit to the parade ground where hundreds of hares waited. The parade ground was a large stone square where recruits practiced drills and combat. It was packed tightly with hares wearing dress tunics. The new recruits were dressed in blue unadorned jackets and the veteran officers wore red dress tunics covered in medals and ribbons. The older non-officers all wore green tunics but there were few of them to be seen. The army was comprised mostly of new recruits and the rest were seasoned officers.

Gripping his battle axe tightly Steelstripe boomed over the sea of hares, "Long Patrol! Dirty raiders and murderers have stolen from our beloved mountain!" At this there were many groans. "But we will not sit and let them get away! We will follow them and take back what is ours! We shall wipe out each and every one of the filthy scum!" continued the badger. Roars of approval met his last sentence and it was many minutes before the hares quieted. Steelstripe held up his paw and waited for things to quiet down. Then he finished in a much calmer, more controlled voice, "Hares of the Long Patrol, my ancestors have made it clear that Roan Ironhammer and his Sand Rats are headed for Redwall, most likely to steal the Sword of Martin. We must take them before they can lay siege on the Abbey." There were murmurs of worry for the Redwallers were peaceful people and couldn't stand up to the likes of Roan and his raiders.

Steelstripe nodded to Colonel Swiftpaw before heading to the front of the army. "Brisk march! Right paw forward!" barked Swiftpaw, "MARCH!"

At his command the 750 hares began moving forward with the mighty badger lord at their front. Swiftpaw moved at double speed to catch up with Steelstripe. As the hares marched one of the senior officers began belting out an old marching song. The other veterans soon picked up the tune and after a few minutes the whole army was marching to the beat of the song.

* * *

Further up the coast a few kilometers from the River Moss, Roan and his horde were marching up the beach. His lieutenant, a medium sized rat named Fraggle who enjoyed flaying others with his three pronged whip approached him. Saluting to the leader, Fraggle fell into step behind Ironhammer. "What is it, Fraggle?" asked Roan with a hint of irritation in his low husky voice.

"The rats at the back be hearing singing, sire." replied Fraggle nervously. Telling the war lord bad news was always avoided as Roan usually took out his anger on the deliverer.

True to his reputation Roan batted Fraggle with his fist, although this time it wasn't because of bad news. "Stupid rat! You came to tell me about singing? The rats probably just imagined it, oaf." Roan finished by hitting Fraggle on the head a second time.

"But, but sir." stuttered the lieutenant, "I heard it meself. And I recognized it too, it was a hare song."

Roan stopped for a second, halting the whole army before he realized what a "hare song" was. The Long Patrol was on his tail! He motioned for his horde to be silent and to hurry up. Roan himself broke into a run for the river, once they got into the shelter of Mossflower Woods they could hide from the trained hares. The army had almost made it to the forest, when they were stopped by a large line of mottled green lizards big enough to ride. Almost undetectable, were the small brown rats riding the giant lizards. The front line parted and made way for a jet black fox, riding a lizard whose color was half way between mottled green and sandy yellow. The fox was accompanied by two mounted rats carrying lances. The fox drew a large jeweled falchion and stood atop his mounts back.

"I am Aravel the Mighty! My army of lizards and rats are the greatest in all the land! I am the all mighty conqueror, the Emperor of all that is! I am the monster in your dreams at night and the terror of your living hours!" shouted the wolf. Then Aravel raised his head to the moon and howled and erie cry.

Roan was about to signal for weapons to be drawn, thinking that his rats could easily cut down the 10 pairs of lizards and rats. But he stayed his paw when he noticed that lizards were gathering behind and to the right of his army. Instead Roan spread his hands wide and said in a clam friendly voice, "I am Roan Ironhammer, leader of the Sand Rats. We mean you no harm and simply wish to pass." Roan thought if he could talk their way through the rats would be able to hold up Steelstripe and his Long Patrol for a while. At least enough for him to get a fair distance away.

"You foolish rat. Aravel lets none through save those who serve him!" growled the black fox. It leapt from the back of its' mount and moved toward Roan, sword in paw. Once he reached Roan, the fox raised his glittering blade. The blade flashed down in the pale light of the moon only to be stopped an inch from its' target by the hilt of an iron war hammer.

Roan pushed the blade aside and swung sideways at Aravel's stomach. The falchion was already in place though, parrying the swing and the one after. Aravel blocked swing after swing, somehow anticipating what Roan would do next. A low swing at Aravel's leg followed by a swift change of direction knocked the legs from under the fox. Roan's next two swings were blocked easily. Aravel rolled out of the way of the third and was trying to stand when the iron hammer came crashing down again, landing in the sand between Aravel's legs. Aravel laid back and as Roan leaned over for another swing kicked up hard with his footpaws. He caught Roan squarely in the stomach and the muscular fox knocked the wind out of the rat as he pushed him away. Just in case of another attack Aravel rolled over his shoulder to stand. There was no other attack coming though because Roan was lying face down in the sand a few meters away. Aravel casually walked to the defenseless rat and raised his falchion for the kill.

_Author's Note: Woohoo! Cliffhanger ending! A long chapter but there was a lot I wanted to put in. Next chapter will either be about the adventures of Tranud and his crew or a new character from Redwall. The song wasn't as cryptic as I would have liked but for me it was pretty good. My poems usually make fun of a certain person in my class. Feedback on the poem would be nice, also I want to know if my combat description was too confusing. Criticism or telling me what I did right (if anything was right) will be greatly appreciated. I'm doing this on Safari now so there shouldn't be many spelling mistakes. Anyways, the next chapter should be out soon enough because I currently have some free time on my hands._

_EDIT: I've reread the story as well as gone through my ideas for future chapters. Tagg may come off a bit Gary-Stuish but I'm trying to make a sort of Martin for Fort Arnad. Sine Arnad is a military base I need someone who can wield any weapon and is good at tactics and the such. I have faults in mind for Tagg but they haven't had a chance to be shown._


	4. Learning a Fine Art

_Author's Note: I've decided to write the chapter about the two new characters instead of following the adventures of Tranud and his corsairs. The different stances, maneuvers and other things about swordplay that appear in this chapter and others are not mine. They are taken from the Lightsaber Techniques in the Star Wars movies. The song in this chapter is not mine either, it is taken from Brian Jaque's book _The Taggerung_._

**Learning a Fine Art**

Redwall was a place of peace and quiet in the early morning hours, especially the morning after a feast. The kitchens were quiet, no breakfast was needed as everyone was still full from last night's repast. A young male otter dressed in a forest green tunic was running across the top of the outer Abbey walls. He had been up since the break of dawn, exercising his muscles in preparation for the lesson he would receive later that day. The otter was rounding the northeast corner when he heard a whistle from below. A young male badger, a few seasons older than the otter had just exited the main Abbey building. The badger was carrying a large tray laden with food and drink.

"Rillflag! Get down from there and have some breakfast! You'll wear yourself out if you don't take a break." shouted the badger.

Rillflag smiled and ran down the stairs taking them two steps at a time. He leaped from the bottom step and landed beside the badger who stood over a head taller than him. The badger sat the tray on the grass and the two adolescents spread a large blanket out on the green lawn. Rillflag sat down with a thump and began chugging a glass beaker of strawberry cordial.

"Slow down there! If you drink any faster you'll drown yourself."

Rillflag just smiled and put the beaker down. He grabbed a scone from the tray and began munching, this time much slower. "You're starting to sound like old Abbot Reiron. Sunflash, if you get any more uptight you'll be sanding the edges off of scones."

Sunflash laughed and sat down beside his friend. Running his paw over the golden stripe that had him named after the legendary Badger Lord, Sunflash grabbed an apple. Biting into the crunchy red fruit he laid back and gazed at the clouds floating through the sky. "Don't you just love looking at clouds moving through the sky above you?" mused the badger, "Hey! That one looks like the mark on your paw!"

There was in fact a cloud in the shape of a speedwell flower that matched the pad on Rillflag's right paw. The otter gazed at the mark for a while then closed his paw on the black flower and remarked, "My mother says this mark was passed down from my father's side. My great-grandfather was the one that first had it, but his was pink."

The otter and badger conversation drifted to talk of their ancestors. Rillflag knew that he was descended from Deyna, the first otter Taggerung and Sunflash didn't know his father. The Badger Mother of Redwall, Dali has said he was a descendant of the Badger Lord Rawnblade Widestripe, and that he had many important ancestors including the one he was named after. About half an hour later the tray was bare other than for a few crumbs. Sunflash stood up and stretched his muscles. By now the creatures of Redwall had awoken and the Abbey was a hive of activity.

"Alright, you bring the tray back to the kitchen and I'll get the practice swords." said Sunflash. The badger had travelled to the mountain stronghold Salamandastron a while ago and had promised to teach Rillflag how to use a sword. Rillflag set the tray down on a counter in the kitchen then found a haversack and filled it with food for lunch. Shouldering the pack he walked to the small wicker gate and waited for his companion. Sunflash arrived a few minutes later with two wooden swords tucked under his arm and a steel battle axe strapped to his back.

"What's with the axe?" inquired Rillflag.

"There've been reports o' vermin in Mossflower. This is just in case we run into any." replied the badger as he unlocked the gate. The two youths walked into Mossflower Woods south of the Abbey. Soon enough, they found themselves in a small clearing. Rillflag dropped the haversack of food and set it at the base of an oak tree. Sunflash tossed a practice sword to him which the otter promptly caught by the blade.

"If I had thrown a real sword at you, your paw would have been cut deeply at the least. Weapons are dangerous, you must always remember that. Sword fighting is a fine art. The sword is your brush. Learn every part of it and know what it can do." Sunflash's normally joyous voice was very serious. He held his sword in his right paw and stood in an offensive stance. His feet were evenly spread and his sword was held in front of him, angled toward Rillflag's head.

The otter nodded and also took his weapon by the hilt. He assumed the same stance as Sunflash but was soon corrected. "You're going to start in a defensive position, then we'll switch. This, is the basic defensive position." said Sunflash as he moved toward his trainee. "Spread your feet evenly apart. But hold your sword to the right of your face, and straight up. Not pointed towards anyone. That is called the defensive neutral ready stance. Keep both paws on the sword till you begin your attack. Two hands gives your better leverage in defense."

Then Sunflash moved back to where he was standing and stood like he was before. "This is called the Aggressive Neutral stance. Now prepare to defend yourself." Sunflash took his left paw off of his sword and stepped forward with his right foot, swinging at Rillflag's left side as he did. The slice was blocked awkwardly by Rillflag who had turned his sword point down to parry. Sunflash automatically retracted his sword to the otter's dismay.

"What did I do wrong this time?" asked Rillflag as he looked at the ground.

"Nothing at all," replied Sunflash, "When I first handled a sword I wasn't even fast enough to parry. I really have ought to taught you this first, but now is better than never." The badger dropped his sword and pointed at different section's of the otter's body. "Your head, is called Zone 1. An attack to the head in called Attack 1 and you use Parry 1 to block it." Then Sunflash showed him what Attack 1 and Parry 1 were.

"Now I'm going to attack your head and you have to block." said Sunflash. Then the two took up their starting positions. Sunflash stepped forward again, this time raising his sword to slice down at his friend's head. It was quickly blocked by Rillflag who held his sword with two hands horizontally above his head. Acting on instinct, Rillflag pushed up with his sword forcing Sunflash back.

"Very good." complimented Sunflash, "Now your right arm, side and the right side of your neck is Zone 2. This is a bit more complicated so if you don't get it feel free to ask me to repeat. Attack 2 is a left to right slash at your opponents right side. Parry 2 is blocking your right side, but you have to remember the block is on the right, the attack on the left. Got that?"

"Yea, I think so. Can you show me what they look like before we practice them?" said Rillflag eagerly. Sunflash showed him the attack and parry a couple times and then they practiced. This time, instead of flipping his blade, the otter just moved it over to parry the blow. Then Sunflash combined Attack 1 and 2. He sliced down and Rillflag promptly blocked and pushed the sword away then dropped his sword to parry the next attack. In this way they went through every body zone and the attacks and parries for them. It was well past noon by the time they finished.

"Alright," said Sunflash panting, "That's enough for today." The badger wiped sweat from his forehead and sat down with his back against a large elm tree. He dug into the haversack and grabbed a canteen of Dandelion fizz and took a long draught. Then he found another canteen which he threw to Rillflag. The otter sat down beside him and began unpacking the food. There was bread, cheese, two small vegetable flans and some fruit.

"So, you learned all that during a week in Salamandastron?" asked Rillflag.

"Yup. The Long Patrol taught me all the basic sword work, but I learned all my axe skills from Lord Steelstripe himself."

"What's the Long Patrol?"

"The Long Patrol is the army of hares at Salamandatron. The older ones are kinda strict but the new recruits are really funny."

"I'd like to meet a hare sometime."

"Yes, just don't let them in the kitchen. It's impossible to fill a hares stomach. Those guys eat more than I do!"

"Really? I'd love to see what Friar Gleary would do with an army of hares in the Abbey."

Both friends laughed at Rillflag's remark.

"We ought to get back to the Abbey." said the otter. Both creatures stood with a groan. Sunflash gathered the wooden swords and Rillflag shouldered the empty haversack and they began their trek back to Redwall. The grass beneath their paws was long and green and there was plenty of new leaves on the trees. Very little sunlight got through the thick green canopy and the light that did was tinted green. There were plenty of flowers and bushes dotted about the forest. The forest was silent, there were no birds chirping and it caused the companions to be quite uncomfortable. To break the deafening silence Rillflag began singing the song that his mother had sung to him as a child;

_Ho if I was a stream I'd chance to go,  
A racin' to the sea,  
Yonder way fresh waters flow,  
An' that's the way for me._

_Leapin' and boundin',  
Splashin' and soundin',  
Rudder round rock an' log,  
With pike an' trout,  
I'd frisk about,  
A good ole riverdog._

_Through the leafy glades the waters call,  
Across the open meadow,  
An' when I sight a waterfall,  
Why down will go me head oh!_

By the time Rillflag finished they were back at the Abbey. Sunflash pushed on the gate but it only went in a bit before stopping. "Someone's locked the gate while we were gone!" exclaimed Sunflash.

"What's the big deal? We'll just go around to the front and bang on the gate." replied Rillflag nonchalantly.

"It's tea time Rillflag! No one's going to be by the gate. They'll all be by the pond or in the orchard on the other side of the Abbey!"

After considering what Sunflash had said Rillflag thought of a solution. "Follow me," he said as he walked to the east wall of the Abbey." He unraveled his sling and found a medium sized rock on the ground. Fitting the rock in the pouch of the sling he began spinning the weapon.

"What are you doing?" questioned Sunflash.

"I'm going to launch this rock over the wall."

"And how will that help? It'll just make everyone think they're under attack."

"Exactly." Rillflag released the rock and it rose high in the air before dropping on the other side of the wall.

"OUCH!" shrieked someone on the other side of the wall.

"We're under attack! To the east wall!" shouted another. From his voice the friends could tell it was Skipper. A few minutes later the wall was lined with otter, some gripping javelins others twirling slings.

"Hey Skip!" said Rillflag, "The gate we left out of was locked. And you wouldn't have heard us if we banged on the gate. This is the only way to get someone up on the wall."

At this all the otters burst out laughing at Rillflag's way of thinking. Soon enough Abbot Reiron appeared on the wall top, curious as to why the otters were all laughing. When Rillflag explained it to the Abbot the reaction he received was quite different.

"Rillflag! That was not what you should have done! Once you get inside I want to see you in my private chambers immediately!" yelled the Abbot before he left the wall.

Skipper told Sunflash and Rillflag that he would open the gate for them. So the otter and badger went around to the west wall and were let in by Skipper and his daughter Azura. Skipper took Rillflag up to the Abbot's quarters while Sunflash stayed with Azura.

"Hopefully the Abbot won't be too hard on him." remarked Azura as the two walked towards the Abbey pond.

"Don't worry Rillflag can take whatever the Abbot dishes out." replied Sunflash.

"I hope so." Out of all the creatures in Redwall Abbey, Sunflash and Azura were Rillflag's best friends. The sociable otter was on good terms with most of the Abbey beasts but Sunflash and Azura were special to them.

When Azura and Sunflash reached the pond they were surrounded by Dibbuns asking to play in the water. Azura happily agreed but Sunflash went off on his own. The young otter dipped her paws in the water as the Dibbuns played and splashed around her.

* * *

Rillflag was led up the stone steps of the Abbey to the second floor. The Abbot's chambers were on the east side, over looking the orchards. Skipper led him to a wooden door with the Abbot's name painted on it. Skipper knocked loudly on the door and was answered by the Abbot's strong yet gentle voice, "Send in Rillflag. You may leave, Skipper."

The older otter patted Rillflag on the back and murmured, "Good luck, kid." Then he headed down the corridors leaving Rillflag alone in the hall.

Rillflag pushed the door open and entered the room. It was brightly lit and everything was neat and in order. In the center of the room was an oak desk which had a large padded chair behind it. In front of the desk were two padded chairs. Bookshelves were built into every wall, the only place there wasn't was to the left of the Abbot's desk where there was an oak door. A large chandelier hung from the ceiling, giving the room its' light. Behind the Abbot was a large window, covered in dark purple drapes. The old mouse Abbot was sitting behind his desk, glass spectacles perched upon his nose.

"Rillflag, please sit." said the Abbot gesturing with a gray furred paw to one of the padded chairs. Reiron's small paw was almost completely covered by his voluminous brown habit sleeve. Rillflag made his way across the pine flooring and sat down on the chair farthest from the door.

"When you came up with the idea of launching a rock over the Abbey wall, what were you thinking of?" asked Reiron calmly.

"I thought that you would think the Abbey was under attack or someone would just go up on the wall to see who it was. Either way someone would have been on the wall and me and Sunflash would get inside the Abbey." answered Rillflag cooly, "And that is exactly what happened."

"Sunflash and I," corrected the Abbot, "No matter. But did you think that some of the Abbey creatures would be frightened if they thought the Abbey was under attack?"

Then Rillflag saw why the Abbot had been so mad. "No, Abbotl Reiron. I didn't think anyone would be scared." he replied shamefully.

"That's not all, Rillflag. That stone hit Francis the vole's paw. She's in the infirmary, Sister May has to make sure nothing is broken. If that stone had hit someone on the head, they would have been knocked out or worse."

Now Rillflag felt guilty about what he had done. He hung his head and said, "I'm sorry, Abbot. I didn't realize that just throwing a rock could cause so much harm. I won't ever do it again in the future."

The Abbot patted the young otter on the shoulder and said gently, "I'm glad you understand now. But it isn't me you should be apologizing to, it's Francis. For doing this you will receive a punishment." The Abbot saw the hurt and shame on the teen's face. He decided to be lenient since the otter was so ashamed, "As a punishment I am assigning you to work with Skipper's crew when they go to check the woods for vermin."

At this Rillflag brightened considerably. Working with Skip's crew was a dream of all the young otters in Redwall. Unintentionally the Abbot had given him a gift not a punishment. He thanked the Abbot before leaving to apologize to Francis before reporting to Skipper. He went up the stairs to the third floor where the infirmary and dormitories were located. The infirmary was full of neatly made beds and cupboards of herbs. Francis was sitting in a orange dress on the edge of a bed in the back of the infirmary. The crybaby vole's eyes were red and she was sniffling more than normal. Rillflag's apology was sincere and it seemed to make the vole feel much better.

After apologizing Rillflag went back out to the Abbey grounds and found Skipper swimming in the pond with Azura and some Dibbuns. He explained to Skipper that he was to help on the next scouting party only to be told there wouldn't be one for a while. Still, the prospect of going with the others when the time came made Rillflag quite ecstatic. Rillflag sought out Sunflash to tell him the news. The golden striped badger was sitting up on the west wall gazing out across the plains.

"Guess what?" asked Rillflag excitedly, "Never mind, I'll just tell you." Then he explained that he got to go on the next vermin scouting.

"Well you better learn to use a sword by then. If you do run into any vermin, that sling of yours won't do much. Vermin are usually tougher than Francis the vole." teased Sunflash. Both of the friends laughed at the thought of Francis being a vermin warrior and the notion that she could be Rillflag in a fight.


	5. Away From Arnad

_Author's Note: The chapters are coming out pretty fast right now, but they'll slow down in a bit. I'm going on a two week vacation to beautiful Greece at the end of June so I won't be writing any more chapters till I'm back. I've decided not to publish the full chapter about Tranud because it would jump around in the timeline to much. So now everyone is left wondering why these weapons are so important. A full explanation is included in the chapter. This is more fun anywasys._

_I would have published two chapters in a single day had not Mother Nature intervened. I had fully written this chapter when a storm knocked out my internet and deleted the unsaved part of my chapter. As I'm not one to write things out on paper then copy them onto the computer the storm has delayed the publish of this chapter. So I've learned my lesson, save much more often and get a generator._

**Away from Arnad**

Captain Gortek Tranud was forced to run for his life when his forces were driven back by the Arnad defenders. Instead of staying in their fort the otters and squirrels combed the forest for the crew of the _Mouseblood_. He and his crew had broken camp and were now being chased through the woods. The red fox had led his crew in circles in an attempt to throw of their pursuers. In a final desperate attempt Tranud had made his crew hide underneath 5 large rotting trees. The corsairs were lying in a ditch underneath the trees, the ditch was filled with dirty water and there were several irritating bugs buzzing around the crew. They had almost been discovered when a ferret had yelled when he was bit by a mosquito. As soon as the coast was clear the fox Captain had beheaded the ferret. Now some of the crew were forced to lie beside the putrid smelling corpse. When the shouting had finally died down Tranud stood and cleaned off his silk tunic as best he could. But the dirty ditchwater had stained the blue shirt permanently. Cursing his bad luck the corsair captain began ordering his crew.

"On yore feet me lily-livered beasts. Squirrels and otters can't hurt us corsairs! Now back to the ship nice and silent like. If'n anyone makes a sound they'll join ol' Preeves." said Gortek pointing with his falchion to the headless body of the ferret corsair. Then the sly fox set off through the woods, slipping in and out of the trunks of oaks, elms and maples. The crew came out on the beach several miles south of where they had originally landed. Since their jolly boats had been burned the freebooters needed to find another way back to their ship.

Swearing for the second time about his bad luck Tranud shoved his falchion into his eel skin belt beside the recently stolen great sword and began wading into the ocean.

"Uh, cap'n...What're ya doin'?" asked a dull looking stoat holding a crude spear.

"I'm swimming back to the ship, idiot! What does it look like? You all better start swimming too if ya to live!" yelled Tranud without turning. Once the water had gotten to his chin he began swimming back to the _Mouseblood_. Weighed down by both the swords on his belt Gortek was hard pressed to reach the ship. But the fox was stronger than most and was filled with determination. When he finally reached the boat his muscles ached and he was out of breath but he had mad it. His arms throbbed as he pulled himself to the deck by climbing the anchor rope and he collapsed as soon as he made it over the rail. The corsairs that had stayed on the ship soon came to his aid and a few minutes later Tranud was lying comfortably in the bed in his cabin. Slowly but steadily the rest of the land party made it to the ship and were pulled aboard. The soaked pirates were all laid in their hammocks as the rest of the crew unfurled the sails and set off north like they usually did that time every season.

* * *

The five companions set off through the forest in the silver light of the moon. Tagg stood in the front of the group of travelers. With the hoods of their green cloaks up and walking in the toe-to-heel manner as they had been taught the youths were virtually invisible. Moving swiftly and silently through the maze of trees Tagg and his friends made great time through the forest. Once, when they were far south of Fort Arnad they had to hide behind a clump of bushes when they heard shouts from the east. Unsure whether the others were friend or foe the otters and squirrels stayed silent the whole time. The moon was almost gone from the sky when they found themselves in a small clearing.

"We should stop here," said Rustle, "It'll give me a chance to solve more of the song and everyone can eat and sleep a bit."

"But we're still pretty close to Fort Arnad!" argued Tagg.

"We were all up for during the raid so we deserve a rest! Besides without the directions from the rest of the song we could easily be lost or worse!" Rustle shot back.

Tagg was still set on continuing though, "If we camp here we'll be found in the morning. Then we'll never be able to retrieve the sword!"

Jay set a paw on Tagg's shoulder and said, "I know you want to continue but we're all tired and some of us were injured during the raid! We can take a quick break and start again in the morning. That way we'll be traveling full of energy and during the day."

"Injured?" asked Tagg before he noticed one of Sprig's footpaws was bandaged. '_It must have been hard for her to keep up the pace I set yet she didn't complain.' _thought Tagg. He consented and they began making camp. Jay went with Rustle to find good firewood, Jennil went foraging and Sprig and Tagg set up the tents.

"I'm sorry I set such a grueling pace. It must have been hard with your injury." said Tagg sincerely. He only received a grunt in reply. "You know Jay was really looking out for you there."

This time Sprig spoke, "I know. He's really sweet underneath that tough sailor personality he puts on."

"I don't think it was a ruse. I think he genuinely would defend anyone with all his might... especially you."

Sprig smiled happily and lay down on the grass with her eyes closed. With the tents set up Tagg needed something else to do. So he found a thick stick and started digging a fire pit. By the time he finished the others arrived. Jay was carrying a load of dry oak logs and Rustle had some small sticks and dry grass. Sprig had filled a bag with some wild vegetables and had caught a couple of fish in a nearby stream. Rustle set up the wood into something that would burn well as Sprig began preparing the food. She cut up the vegetables using a large kitchen knife she had brought along then started descaling the fish.

Half an hour later Rustle had gotten the fire blazing and the 5 travelers all sat and warmed their paws around it. Tagg found two large flat stones for Jennil. She put the fish on one and the vegetables on the other. She propped both slabs over the fire with some more rocks and left them to cook. A while later the delicious smell of roast fish and cooked vegetables filled the air. Jennil took five wooden plates from her bag and gave each of them some vegetables, a slice of fish and a roll from the food packs. The food was delectable and soon enough all five in the tents sleeping on a full stomach.

* * *

Tagg woke with the sun in the sky but not fully overhead. He went to the stream Jennil had caught the fish from and did his daily exercises.. First he traced a cross on the ground and stood in the center. Then Tagg sheathed his sword and began. He began moving about the cross executing blocks, punches and kicks as if he was surrounded by enemies. He would step on an end of the cross and make a block with his forearm while punching with his other fist. He moved about till he had done this on every end then he moved around for the second time. This time he did and inner forearm block as if countering a mid-section punch then punched back. After maneuvering around the cross twice and practicing the two basic defenses and a basic attack he moved back to the starting position. Then he drew his sword and began practicing some basic parries and attacks. He stood with his feet spread and his sword in hand. Tagg stepped back with his left foot and blocked an attack on his left side then countered with an attack on his "opponents" right side. Then he stepped forward with his left foot, thrusting at the mid-section of an unseen enemy. Tagg stepped with his right foot and pivoted, parried at his right side then slashed right to left. He then stepped forward with his right again, thrusting at his "enemy's" mid-section. After executing a more complicated 180 degree turn he blocked a blow to his left leg, his right leg and his head. Then he stepped forward with his right foot and swung his blade so it cleaved the air where someone's head would have been. Then he sheathed his sword. The two short exercises would keep Tagg sharp during the expedition, he had learned them a long time ago when he first learned to use a sword.

A few minutes later he was wearing a clean tunic and had cleaned all the sweat from his workout into the stream. When he got back to the others had woken while he was away and Jennil was busy preparing a breakfast of oatmeal with honey and dried fruit in it. Tagg sat down and began cleaning all of his weapons and the others began to do like wise. Tagg was wiping the edge of his dagger when the cloth slipped.

"Ow!" exclaimed Tagg. The keen blade of the dagger had cut his right paw. There was now a thin red line running across the pad on his paw and blood began running from the cut and covering his paw. Rustle examined the paw and began looking for a bandage in his bag, "It looks deep. You'll need a bandage."

"Is your paw naturally that shape?" asked Rustle as he dug through his wood and canvas backpack.

He was referring to the pad on Tagg's right paw. It was pink and in the shape of a speedwell flower. "Yea, it's been that way since the day I was born." replied Tagg.

"It must be really unique. If you ever see anyone else with a paw pad shaped like that, I'd say they're related to you." said Rustle, "Here! I found a bandage."

Rustle grabbed a canteen of water on his way to Tagg. First he cleaned out the wound with some water from the canteen, then he wrapped Tagg's paw in the cloth bandage and tied it off. "That should keep any dirt out and let it heal."

"Breakfast's ready!" said Jennil. She gave everyone a wooden bowl full of porridge and a carved wooden spoon. The pot she had made it in was still a quarter full.

"Why did you make so much?" asked Sprig.

"Oh, I'm going to make them into bars to eat on the way." answered Jennil. After everyone ate they set about making camp. Rustle studied the song some more, Jennil made her oatmeal bars, Jay went to clean the dishes and Sprig and Tagg took down the tents. Soon enough everything was packed away and once again they were on the road south.

"Did you solve any more of the song, Rustle?" asked Tagg eagerly.

"Not yet. But I suggest we keep going south for now. Just keep going till the forest ends." answered Rustle.

"Or until we figure out that it had told us to turn a long time ago." said Jay.

Sprig pushed the large otter and said, "Don't you say anything like that ever again!"

"Yes, Mother." said Jay as sadly as possible. All the friends laughed including Sprig.

The friends continued their trek through the forest all day. They didn't stop for lunch and instead ate Jennil's oat bars and some fruit in their packs. Jennil had suggested they do this to save time and because the fruit would spoil if they left it much longer.

The sun was setting when the companions set camp for the second time. They did the same thing as last time and once again fell asleep with their stomachs full from another succulent meal. As before they all went to sleep at the same time and left no guard. The three males slept in one tent and the two females in the other.

Sprig woke in the middle of the night. She crawled out of the tent and looked up at the sky. The moon was high in the cloudless sky and there were plenty of stars to be seen. Sprig sighed and began thinking of nights spent at Fort Arnad gazing at the stars with Jay. She was startled by the sound of a stick snapping a few feet away. She could make out a shape in the darkness and when she looked around she noticed even more creatures surrounding the camp.

Sprig started to wake everyone, "Everybody! Wake up! Intruders in the ca-"

Someone had hit her in the back of the head and she slipped to the ground unconscious. She hadn't been knocked out in time to stop her from rousing the others though. At her call Jay burst of his tent, axe in hand. He launched himself and the dark form of Sprig's assailant. The attacker had no chance as his head was flying through the air a few seconds later. But Jay was also brought down under the weight of many unseen enemies. Tagg and the others were fighting back to back but were also overwhelmed and made to surrender. Tagg and the squirrels were tied up and made to carry the unconscious bodies of Jay and Sprig. Tagg took the larger male otter while Jennil and Rustle carried Sprig together.

"It's all my fault! I should have stayed up to guard the camp!" said Tagg.

"Stop berating yourself. None of us thought to post a guard." Jennil replied.

"Yes, but it was me who brought all of you on this trip. Now Jay and Sprig are knocked out and you two squirrels are tied up."

"Jennil's right Tagg. We were all there and no one else thought to post a guard."

Tagg sighed, "I know its' just I feel as if I somehow could have prevented this from happening."

"If you had stayed up you probably have been overwhelmed. Just like Sprig and Jay were. Rustle and I would have too."

"But now we'll never get the sword back!" said Tagg.

Jennil replied, "Who knows? Maybe our capturers are the ones that stole the sword."

"I doubt it. Then why would they come back this way?" said Rustle.

_Author's Note: So I have this really good chapter on a group learning combat. I was going to put it at the beginning before I realized it wouldn't work for Tagg and them to be learning such basic maneuvers. So now I get to put a bit of it into Tagg working out and Sunflash teaching Rillflag. But the main lesson will have to wait for Tagg to get to Redwall so he can teach people there. The first unarmed exercise Tagg did was Tae-kwon Do and the second was a basic Dulon. Once again reviews would be greatly appreciated._


End file.
